Iceland
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Trackchasing Country #31
Greetings from places on the way to and from Hafnafjorour, Iceland. Click on the links below to read the “story” and see the photos from this fun trip to a small Nordic Island country where few Americans have ever been…Iceland, home to my trackchasing country #31.
Reprinted from my April 25, 2009, Trackchaser Report and the grand visit to mysterious Iceland. DAYS 2-4 – “GO NORTH YOUNG MAN” TRACKCHASING TOUR Michael Bloch – Glad to hear you are feeling better. EDITOR’S NOTE #1 Some of you, primarily folks I have met on my international travels, may only be receiving my INTERNATIONAL Trackchaser Reports. Of course, I do go trackchasing a good deal domestically (for me that means the United States). If you would like to be added to my domestic Trackchaser Report distribution list, just drop me a line at ranlay@yahoo.com. EDITOR’S NOTE #2 In my next report, I will share with you my “special announcement”. Remember there will be three winners. First prize gets a first-class amenities kit from Delta Airlines plus a race program from the Dubai Autodrome. Second and third prizes get a Dubai Autodrome program. There haven’t been too many entries since the answer could come from such a broad range of subjects. My next Trackchaser Report is not likely to reach you for at least a week. Send in your wild guess as to what the announcement is concerning and you might win a prize. Deadline for entries is May 7, 2009. Greetings from Hafnafjorour, Iceland This trip started with a new track visit to Alabama on Wednesday night. From there it was an overnight flight from Boston to Reykjavik, Iceland on Thursday night. I had one night to spend in Iceland (Friday) before seeing the race in Iceland on Saturday afternoon. The following is what transpired during days 2-4 of this international trackchasing trip. THE COUNTRY LIST #31 RANLAY Racing Lifetime Trackchasing Countries # 1 – UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – Peoria Speedway (Mt. Hawley, oval) – Track #1, Peoria, Illinois – circa 1954 (age 5) # 2 – CANADA – Cayuga Speedway (oval) – Track #174, Nelles Corner, Ontario, Canada – July 31, 1988 (Dick Trickle winner) # 3 – AUSTRALIA – Parramatta City Raceway (oval) – Track #180, Granville, New South Wales, Australia – November 17, 1989 (accompanied by Carol) # 4 – UNITED KINGDOM – Northhampton International Raceway (oval) – Track #378, Northhampton – June 26, 1999 (accompanied by Carol, Kristy, Jim) # 5 – NETHERLANDS – Driesum Racetrack (oval) – Track #839, Driesum – May 5, 2005 (accompanied by Roland Vanden Eynde) # 6 – BELGIUM – Bellekouter oval (oval) – Track #841, Affligem – May 8, 2005 (accompanied by Roland Vanden Eynde) # 7 – FRANCE – Circuit de Croix en Ternois (road course) – Track #843, Saint-Pol sur-Ternoise – May 8, 2005 (accompanied by Roland Vanden Eynde – 2nd new country in one day!) # 8 – GERMANY – Nurburgring (road course) – Track #844, Nurburg – May 13, 2005 (accompanied by Carol, Roland Vanden Eynde) # 9 – NEW ZEALAND – Western Springs Speedway (oval) – Track #1,134, Western Springs – December 26, 2006 (accompanied by Carol) # 10 – MEXICO – Triovalo Bernardo Obregon (oval) – Track #1,281, Tiajamulco de Zuniga, Jalisco – October 14, 2007 (accompanied by Carol, J.J., Roger Ward, no not that Roger Ward) # 11 – BARBADOS – Bushy Park Racing Circuit (road course) – Track #1,296, Bushy Park – December 9, 2007 # 12 – THAILAND – Bira Circuit (road course) – Track #1,300, Pattaya – January 19, 2008 # 13 – SOUTH AFRICA – Durban Grand Prix (road course) – Track #1,315, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal – February 24, 2008 (accompanied by J.J. and Will Van Horne) # 14 – JAMAICA – Dover Raceway (road course) – Track #1,322, Brown’s Town St. Ann – March 24, 2008 # 15 – SWEDEN – Sturup Raceway (road course) – Track #1,335, Malmo – May 10, 2008 (accompanied by Carol) # 16 – DENMARK – Ring Djursland (road course) – Track #1,336, Tirstrup – May 11, 2008 (accompanied by Carol) # 17 – CZECH REPUBLIC – Automotodrome BRNO (road course) – Track #1,381, Brno – September 13, 2008 # 18 – AUSTRIA – Lambrechten Stock Car Track (road course) – Track #1,382, Lambrechten – September 14, 2008 # 19 – IRELAND – Tipperary International Raceway (oval) – Track #1,388, Rosegreen – October 26, 2008 (Carol and I visited this track earlier in the year) # 20 – GUYANA – South Dakota Circuit (road course) – Track #1,390, Timehri – November 2, 2008 (accompanied by Carol) # 21 – CHINA – The Guia Circuit (road course) – Track #1,392, Macau – November 16, 2008 (accompanied by Carol) # 22 – COSTA RICA – Autodromo La Guacima (road course) – Track #1,398, La Guacima – November 30, 2008 # 23 – ANDORRA – Grandvalira Circuit (road course) – Track #1,404, Port d’Envalira, Andorra – January 17, 2009 # 24 – ARGENTINA – Circuito Efren Chemolli (oval) – Track #1,406, Buenos Aires, Argentina – January 31, 2009 # 25 – QATAR – Losail International Circuit (road course) – Track #1,408, Doha, Qatar – February 13, 2009 # 26 – BAHRAIN – Bahrain International Circuit (road course) – Track #1,410, Sakhir, Bahrain – February 27, 2009 # 27 – UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Dubai Autodrome (road course) – Track #1,411, Dubai, United Arab Emirates – February 28, 2009 # 28 – COLOMBIA – Autodromo de Tocancipa (road course) – Track #1,415, Tocancipa, Colombia – March 22, 2009 # 29 – SPAIN – Motorland Aragon (road course) – Track #1,416, Alcaniz, Spain – March 28, 2009 # 30 – PORTUGAL – Circuto de Murca (road course) – Track #1,417, Murca, Portugal – March 29, 2009 # 31 – ICELAND – Kapelluhraum (road course) – Track #1,420, Hafnafjorour, Iceland – April 25, 2009 ICELAND – FAST FACTS Full country name: Republic of Iceland Capital City: Reykjavik Official language: Icelandic Population (2007): 322,000 – U.S. cities with a similar population: Arlington, TX, Cincinnati, OH, Pittsburgh, PA, Wichita, KS Currency: Icelandic Krona. Current exchange rate is one U.S. dollar to about 130 krona. Just a year ago, a dollar bought only 60 kronor. Five different coins are offered in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 50 and 100. The smallest banknote I saw was 500 krona. Where: Iceland is an island nation located in the North Atlantic Ocean just south of the Arctic Circle. It is the world’s 18th largest island. Some 63% of the island is tundra and only 23% is vegetated. Iceland is considered part of Europe. The closest body of land is Greenland, just 287 kilometers away. Geological activity: The volcanic eruption of Laki in 1783-84 caused a famine that killed nearly a quarter of the island’s population. There are also many geysers in Iceland, including Geysir (I visited this spot) which erupts constantly. Economy: Iceland has some of the world’s highest levels of economic and civil freedoms. In 2007, Iceland was recognized as the most developed country in the world by the United Nations Human Development Index. It was also the fourth most productive country per capita. Iceland has been badly affected by the current world financial crisis. The countries three largest banks collapsed during the crisis. Their overall debt exceeded six times the nation’s GDP. The fishing industry provides almost 40% of export earnings. Iceland has a flat tax system. The main personal income tax is a flat 22.75% and combined with municipal taxes the total tax rate is not more than 35.7%. There are many income tax deductions. In January 2009, the coalition government collapsed due to the public dissent over the handling of the financial crisis. As luck would have it, Iceland’s national election was held on Saturday, the day of the race. My hotel manager told me the leftists aka Communists had won! Everyone has an opinion about politics. Sport: The main traditional sport in Iceland is Gilma, a form of wrestling, thought to have originated in medieval times. Handball is often referred to as a national sport. Time: Despite its mid-Atlantic location Iceland observes Greenwich Mean Time year-round. Health: Life expectancy for women is 83.0 years and 80.0 for men, one of the highest in the world. Climate: The highest temperature ever recorded was 86.9 degrees Fahrenheit. The lowest was -36.4 degrees. Demographics: In 2007, just 13% of the Icelandic population had been born abroad. Poles make up the far largest minority nationality. The southeast corner of Iceland is the most densely populated region. It is also the location of the capital Reykjavik, the northernmost capital in the world. Religion: Nearly 81% of the population are members of the National Church of Iceland (Lutheran). * Some of this info comes from my research at Wikipedia and from the Icelandair in-flight magazine. PART 1of 1 – ICELAND THINGS YOU MIGHT HAVE NOTICED HAD YOU BEEN PAYING MORE ATTENTION IN SCHOOL I will maintain my policy of affording anonymity to readers who send in interesting bits of information or who provide cutting edge analysis. From a reader in northeast Ohio. I have many subscribers to the RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report. The current total is a bit more than one thousand. One reader, from Ohio, used to correspond with me from time to time via email. I had never met this gentleman. Suddenly, last spring his emails stopped and I kept getting rejections to his electronic receipt of my reports. Therefore I was surprised to receive a telephone call from this former reader. His message mentioned that he had lost his job back in May. Along with his job loss, his finances no longer permitted him the luxury of affording an email address. Nevertheless, he was calling to inform me of a new track in Ohio that was beginning to race. Wow! Talk about loyal and ardent readers. It’s guys like Brian Tredway who make my day. From a reader at the Pacific Golf Club. I recently added one of my fellow golfers to the growing throng of RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report readership. Recently I saw this 89-year old golfer on the driving range. I asked him if he had been reading my reports. He said, “Yes, but do you know how many pages were in the last report…..52! I can’t print out 52 pages”. EDITOR’S NOTE Yes, my friend, Farr Porter might be correct about the number of pages required to print a single report. However, I reminded him that he was retired and had all the time in the world to set down and read the RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report. Recently, my own brother was lamenting the fact that the reports are on the longish side. He told me he prefers the captioned travelogue of photos from each trip found at www.randylewis.org. I hope folks can enjoy both the written word as well as the trip photos. I did remind my brother who works for PepsiCo that he can take either sick days or personal days off from work in order to catch up on his reading of these reports. TODAY’S HEADLINES Should I have expected to see another trackchasing at today’s Iceland track?………………more in “The People”. It was 35 degrees with a wind blowing at 30 M.P.H. and I went swimming outdoors for an hour …………..details in “The Trip – Friday, April 24, 2009”. Two heads are better than one …………..details in “The Trip – Saturday, April 25, 2009”. This is all true! What you are about to read is based upon a true story. Heck, I’m seeing some of this stuff for the first time myself! THE OBJECTIVE, THE TRIP AND THE PEOPLE…AND A WHOLE LOT MORE The Objective Really, the objective of this trip is very simple. Yes, the objective in trackchasing is to have fun. One person’s fun may be another person’s fun and it may not. At this stage in my trackchasing career, seeing new tracks in faraway places is more fun than simply building up my overall track total. When I go trackchasing internationally, it can very often decrease the number of tracks I can see. On a “normal” weekend in the United States where I leave home on Friday and return home on Monday, I would average 3-4 new tracks. Let’s say that number is 3.5 new tracks. I have seen racing in 31 different countries. However, in nineteen of those countries I was only able to see one new track during the weekend I visited that country. That means I fell 2.5 tracks short during that weekend of seeing the number of tracks I “usually” see during a domestic trackchasing trip. Simple math tells me I have “missed” some 47 tracks or so (19 x 2.5) by going abroad in search of new tracks. I don’t mind it a bit. It’s so much fun to “travel the world”. International trackchasing motivates me to get out of my comfort zone. Was the trip really “worth” it? “But Randy, you went all the way to Iceland for just 36 hours. Was it worth it?” I would answer the question this way. Spending 36 hours in Iceland is better than spending NO hours in Iceland. No, I could not explore the country as if I were spending a week there. However, when I have just a short time to spend in a country my senses are heightened. I try to see as much as I can in whatever time I have. I will always have the opportunity to re-visit those places that interest me another time. The Trip THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2009 Time zones and airports? In order to make certain I didn’t miss my 9 p.m. departure from Boston to Reykjavik, Iceland I left Atlanta early on Thursday morning after sleeping overnight in an Alabama interstate rest area. I arrived in Boston at 11 a.m. This gave me a 10-hour layover in Boston’s Logan International Airport. I considered going into Boston, but I’ve had a cold and wasn’t sure if I could store my luggage at the airport. So…..I tried different restaurants in the airport during the day (Phillips Seafood Express, Dunkin’ Donuts and a Chinese eatery in the international terminal). They were all good. Iceland operates on Greenwich Mean Time. That puts them four hours ahead of Boston and seven hours ahead of my home in California. The flight time was about five hours. That meant leaving at 9 p.m. Eastern Time had me arriving at the Reykjavik airport at just past 6 a.m. on Friday morning. The airplane was my hotel for the night! FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2009 Food, money and postcards. Although my Icelandair flight was aboard a modern airplane, they didn’t offer any complimentary food or snacks. Therefore, upon landing my first objective (even before I got my checked baggage) was to get something to eat. The airport is relatively large considering the entire population of Iceland is only 322,000. It is somewhat stark in design, as I found much of Iceland’s architecture. I didn’t have any Icelandic krona yet, but I could use AMEX to get breakfast. I quickly discovered a place that had a mini-breakfast buffet. That was perfect. All morning arriving flights land at Reykjavik by 8 a.m. There are no more arriving flights until past noon. That’s unusual. This left the breakfast area decidedly uncrowded while I assessed my plan for this 36-hour on the ground trip to Iceland. My next stop in the airport was to get some local currency. I plunked down two of Carol’s never-ending supply of U.S. twenty-dollar bills and received a bit more than 5,000 kronor in return. As many of you know, Iceland’s economy, currency and banking system nearly collapsed during the beginning of the economic crisis. Just a year ago, the U.S. dollar bought only 60 kronor. Today I got about 126 kronor to the dollar. That meant I would be buying things at less than half of what it would have cost 12 months ago. By 2019, when this report is being shared the exchange rate was one U.S. dollar to 137 kronor. I didn’t think the rental car office opened until 8 a.m. That gave me a few minutes to buy postcards and mail them off to friends and family. The cards and stamps cost more than one dollar each. I’m not complanin’, I’m just explainin’. A little rental car for a big price and “Torco” as well. Finally, it was time to get my rental car. Rental cars are expensive in Iceland. I had a reservation that called for me to pay $193 for a two-day rental of the smallest car available. That wasn’t very good. However, when we completed the transaction at the rental counter, the price had been reduced to $157 for the two-day rental and included the use of a GPS unit. “Tonto” my ever-faithful GPS partner works in Europe but does not recognize Iceland’s rightful place as a European country. Therefore, I would be directed by “Torco”, Tonto’s Icelandic GPS brother. Torco was a saving grace several times during the trip. I keep my ears open for fun things to do. The rental car guy was both engaging and somewhat deliberate. I was his only customer and I think he was lonely. He turned me on to the “Blue Lagoon” (http://www.bluelagoon.com/). The Blue Lagoon is Iceland’s most unique and popular attraction. Guests (like me) get to enjoy bathing and relaxing in a geothermal seawater lagoon. It’s all outdoors. The waters were warm, not hot, but the outside temperature came in at about 35 degrees with a 30 M.P.H. wind. This promoted the idea of keeping as much of my body in the water at all times as I could. I was able to rent a locker, a swimsuit and a towel. Normal admission to the Blue Lagoon is 20 Euros (about $27 U.S.). However, “seniors” get in for just seven Euros. I asked how old I had to be to get the senior rate. As soon as I asked I realized how stupid that question was. A better statement would have been, “One senior, please”. Yes, my negotiating skills teachers would have cringed at my first question. Nevertheless, the clerk did answer my query. She told me “if you are a senior where you are from you are a senior here”. Yes, we geezers rock! Don’t miss the pictures from the Blue Lagoon. It was time to explore in my Ford Ka. The above is not a misprint. I had rented a Ford Ka (above). The car was so small such a short name is befitting. Even though it seemed as if I could reach both the front bumper and the rear one while sitting in the driver’s seat, I enjoyed the little bugger. Its five-speed transmission made it fun to drive. From the Blue Lagoon, I went driving. I drove into the interior of the island. I drove more than 200 miles. It doesn’t get dark these days in Iceland until about 10 p.m. I am sure in late June people can play golf here at midnight. I did see them enjoying a round of golf is some pretty brisk temperatures. It’s probably best for you to enjoy the unusual black lava and snow-capped mountain scenery by going to www.ranlayracing.com and clicking on the “Iceland” tab in the “Foreign Countries Visited” category. As the day was beginning to wind down, I asked Torco to find me a hotel. He recommended the Hotel Viking. It was perfectly located and served a good breakfast the next morning. Once I had my hotel in hand, I gave my Icelandic contact, Gunnar B, a phone call. I’ll tell you more about that in the “People” section. SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2009 Saturday morning breakfast. Today was race day! I was about to see racing in my 31st trackchasing country. However, my complimentary hotel breakfast would come first. When I had checked in the night before the clerk asked me what time I wanted breakfast. I told her that 10 a.m. would be fine. I expected a judgmental smirk but didn’t get one. The next morning when I showed up at 10:05 a.m., the hotel manager was beginning to clear breakfast away. Not so fast mister. I had been told there would be no food or drink served at the racetrack today. I needed to stock up on breakfast since I didn’t know where my next meal might come from. My breakfast bounty was plentiful although there were no hot foods. There was a generous supply of sliced ham and cheeses. The buffet also included several dry cereals and juices. Finally, there was a wide selection of crackers and cookies. I downed a large quantity of everything and was on my way. A bit more sightseeing before getting to the track. I took the opportunity to do some more local sightseeing since the race did not begin until 1 p.m. I stumbled across a golf course that bordered the North Atlantic Ocean. The temperature was in the low 40s and the wind was blowing in off the water at 20-30 M.P.H. The water was as blue as blue can be. The golfers were playing in full winter gear including stocking caps. I love golf, but not under these conditions. Late Saturday afternoon. The flight service from Reykjavik to the states was somewhat limited. There was just one daily flight each day from Boston. New York didn’t even have a flight each day. The flight to Boston today left at 5 p.m. If I didn’t make that flight I would have to wait 24 hours for the next one. By the way, I was flying standby as I always do. Would you be willing to get a steeply discounted flight to Iceland? I suspect several people nodded their heads in the affirmative. Now the next question. Would you be willing to fly standby on the one and only flight to the states knowing that if you did not make it, you might have to wait another 24 hours…..and then another 24 hours, etc., etc.? I don’t see as many people accepting the offer for the deeply discounted ticket now. You see I am an underfunded trackchaser. I have to work hard to spread my limited funds around. I cannot, and never have been able to spend what my fellow competitors do to fly around the world. Sorry, I grew up poor in Illinois and am just trying to keep food on the table today. I am happy to report that I made the 5 p.m. flight back to Boston on Saturday. This would set me up for a historic trackchasing achievement of epic proportions…..or something like that. The People FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2009 Two heads are better than one. I always try to make contact with someone “on the ground” in the foreign country I plan to visit. I learned during the early part of my business career that two heads (or more) are better than just my head. I have also learned that people like to help other people. They enjoy sharing their local knowledge. Early on in the planning phase for this trip, I made contact with “Gunnar B” (above). During the course of our email conversations I am sure I bugged him with more questions than I had a right too. However, when traveling such a long distance (more than 10,000 miles) I needed to know the details. I was most concerned that the race might be canceled. They had last held an official race in Iceland back in 2003. That was six years ago! In the latter stages of 2008, they had a “practice race”. It seems there were some political/legal problems with various parties that kept the cars off the track. I was also concerned about the weather canceling the event. Spring comes very late in Iceland. The forecast called for a high chance of rain with temperatures in the low 40s and wind. In the United States, that’s a recipe for “pulling the plug”. However, Gunnar assured me there would be no cancellation regardless of rain or cold temperatures. How could Gunnar be so sure? He’s the president of this Icelandic racing group! What he says goes. I learned a lot during my business career that I find helpful in trackchasing. Yes, two heads are better than one. I also learned quickly that the higher up the “food chain” you can make contact, the better your chances are for acceptance and success. If the president of the group said they would not cancel, I could take that to the bank. Gunnar had given me his phone number and asked me to call him when I arrived in Iceland. I spent most of day #1 in Iceland driving all over the country. Toward evening, (it doesn’t get dark in Iceland until about 10 p.m. now), I found my hotel in Hafnafjorour. I was just getting ready to have dinner at the hotel’s five-star restaurant when I noticed a payphone. Some inquiries informed me I could make a local call for 50 kronor. I decided to give Gunnar a call. When I reached him, he was working in his garage on his race car. Since his shop was less than 10 miles from my hotel, he invited me over to take a look at his racing operation. However, getting his address over the phone, with correct spellings, could not be left to an English speaking American (me). I quickly commandeered a young Icelandic woman who spoke the local language as well as English. She conversed with Gunnar in Icelandic and then wrote the address down for me and I was good to go. I plugged that address into “Tocar”, my Icelandic GPS buddy and found Gunnar and his shop in no time. I really don’t know what someone like Gunnar thinks when he receives an email out of the blue from a guy like me who wants to come to Iceland for 36 hours just to see a race. I suspect he might have thought I would never show up! My personal tour of an Icelandic race shop. Gunnar’s race shop was large and full of racecars. There were also racers coming and going during the time I was there. I got some great photos of both Gunnar and everything at the shop. Please go to www.ranlayracing.com if you want to see them. Use the “Foreign Countries Visited” tab and then click on “Iceland”. Gunnar gave me a good deal of background on Icelandic racing. They have drags, rally, off-road and autocross. He had a difficult time understanding the fact that out of all those types of racing events only autocross was “trackchasing countable”. I’m with Gunnar on this one. I don’t know why we don’t count the other types of events either. Nevertheless, I am committed to the trackchasing sanctioning body and must abide by their rules if I want to play. The rules are unusual enough as they are written. I wasn’t part of the rules session that established more than 90% of the rules we have today. Everyone entered the trackchasing hobby counting tracks in the fashion that they had become accustomed too. Folks were all over the board on this issue. Having a common set of rules/guidelines was meant to make the comparison of one trackchaser’s achievements with another easier to do. We even have one trackchaser who counts his tracks as he feels the rules were “intended” to be written. Although he was one of the original rules makers, somehow the group he was a part of didn’t get the rules the way he wanted them. Some folks just have a hard time with “consensus” decision-making. Going with the consensus simply means that you are willing to accept the direction the group wants to go regardless of what your personal opinion is. We had a very well-defined procedure in place for anyone who doesn’t like the current rules and wants to propose some new ones. I always suggest that folks who complain about the current rules submit their rules proposals. I wouldn’t mind seeing a few rules changed or modified although I don’t feel strongly enough to propose new ones. I also wouldn’t want to waste my time, if a rules proposal I thought was good had no chance of passing. I met up with Gunnar out at the track on Saturday as well. He had hoped to give me a ride around the track in one of the racecars. Alas, no one had a passenger’s seat in any of the cars and therefore there would be no ride. I also introduced the trackchaser commissioner to Gunnar. Yes, trackchasing’s unofficial commissioner from Quakertown, Pennsylvania was here! You’ll be able to see a photo of the Icelandic racing group president and the unofficial Trackchasing Commissioner in a North America meets European racing czar meeting……or something like that! Thank you! Gunnar….thank you very much for patiently answering all of my questions. Thank you very much for the tour of your shop. Although my stay in Iceland was short, it met and exceeded all of my expectations. Good luck this racing season. SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2009 What’s it like to climb Mt. Everest and find someone else already there? I meet all kinds of people when I go trackchasing. Of course, today would be a day of “firsts”. Today was the first day I had encountered another trackchaser in a foreign country that I had not planned to meet. “But, Randy”, the loyal and dedicated RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report reader, would likely state, “You’ve told us some wild tales in the past. I’ve enjoyed every one of them. However, are you going to try to tell us that you ran into another trackchaser all the way up in frickin’ Iceland?” Yes, that is about what I am about to tell you! Loose lips sink ships. I was not as surprised as you might think. As you know, for security reasons, I do not announce my trackchasing schedule in advance. I figure if that policy is good enough for the President of the United States it is good enough for me. However, I made a mistake in my security procedures. While I was being interviewed live on the #1 radio station in Bogota, Columbia, I was asked what my future international trackchasing plans were. I naively told most of Bogota that I would soon be trackchasing in both Italy and Iceland. Italy ended up being replaced by Spain and Portugal a few weeks back. However, Iceland remained on the schedule. Then I had a choice to make. Should I share the contents of my radio interview with everyone who visits my website before I went to Iceland or afterwards? I figured one of two trackchasers and, maybe both, would travel to the far ends of the earth to be the first trackchaser ever to pursue the hobby this far north. Those two trackchasers were Roland Vanden Eynde and Will White. I was half right with my assumption. What should I do? When I pulled into the track who did I see? It was none other than trackchasing’s unofficial commissioner Will White! He didn’t see me or my little Ford Ka. I had to make a split-second decision. This is a dog eat dog hobby. In order for one trackchaser to do well, another must suffer. Sorry, it’s just the nature of how the thing was organized. Actually, I like it that way. I could drive into the back of Will hard enough to send him to the hospital without seeing any countable racing action. He could still tell his friends he made it to Iceland, but I would be the first trackchaser to plant a flag in the former Danish property. What did I do? I simply drove up behind Will to within a couple of feet of him…..and honked my horn. Will turned and waved as if he were expecting me. Of course, he was. Will, like most trackchasers, follows my trackchasing activities in great detail. Of course, he had listened to my Bogota radio interview (and you should too if you have not already) and knew I would be at the track today. EDITOR’S NOTE Will and I had an opportunity to spend the afternoon together. We talked about my Trackchaser Reports. We discussed the fact that everything should not be taken “literally”. Of course, I would never consider running Will down with my rental car. That’s just one example of how these words should not be taken literally. The RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Reports are meant to both inform and entertain. The pictures support the words in the form of a “travelogue”. For lack of a better way to describe it some of our trackchasers (I’m not talking about Will) are too “ignorant” (please look up the definition of this word if necessary) to understand the difference between spoof, satire, editorial comment and descriptions of fact. I have done my best to weed out those people from my distribution list. However, the worldwide web is a public place. Even the uninformed can get a laptop these days. I support a one-year waiting period for some people in this regard. Will White had a story to tell. Since I didn’t run Will down, what did I do? After I honked I took his picture. Then I listened to his story. Will is considered an “underfunded” trackchaser. I, on the other hand, am considered the “Bill Gates” of trackchasing. That’s the funny thing about “labels”. If they are repeated long enough, people start to believe them. Personal financial statements have never been required to enter the hobby of trackchasing. Maybe that was a rule that trackchasing’s founding father and friends should have considered. That way, we would all know the facts. Maybe if folks knew the “true situation” I would not have to be considered the “Bill Gates” of trackchasing. I’m just sayin’. Despite my being the “real” underfunded trackchaser, I gave Will a sponsorship tip that could easily put him back on the active trackchasing trail. We’ll see if he follows through but it’s up to him now. I hope he makes the right decision. Will tries to economize wherever he can. In this regard, he did not rent a car. He landed at the airport, then took a bus to town. From there he WALKED a little more than SIX MILES to the track. At my power walking speed that would take an hour and a half. At a normal walking speed that’s more than a two-hour walk! This data was confirmed by Tocor (Tonto’s Icelandic GPS brother). Will was surprised he had walked that far. Lucky for him the weather was much better today than yesterday when the wind-chill was below zero. I had a tear in my eye as I listened to Will’s tale. What could I do to help him? Here was a fellow competitor who had WALKED six miles from his hotel to the track. He would likely have to walk SIX miles back when the race was finished. Since he did not now the races were to begin at 1 p.m. he had been standing out in the elements (cold and wind) for a good amount of time before I arrived. There was no shelter or any formal seating at the track. Finally, Will had not had any food or drink for the day. There was nothing to buy at the track. This is how I found Will…..with bunions that would soon begin to ache, hypothermia that would soon begin to set in if this continued much longer and a man who would surely succumb to the lack of food and water that any individual requires and deserves. How could I help this fellow? First, I offered him the shelter of my Thrifty Rental Car Racing Ford Ka. Now it wasn’t a Lexus or a Cadillac. On my trackchasing budget, it was all I had. Nevertheless, I shared what I had for the comfort of a fellow trackchaser. It took me some time to move my luggage from the front seat to the trunk. The trunk was so small it could barely fit my one piece of carryon luggage and my computer case. Throughout the afternoon, Will joined me in the comfort of our metal cocoon. Sharing is what it’s all about. As I looked over at Will I noticed he looked a little “peeked” (pronounced peek-ed). That’s a word my grandmother used to use. I figured that just like my grandmother did with me Will needed a little nutrition. When asked he told me he had had nothing to eat all day. We were now moving into the early afternoon. Since I had talked with Gunnar, I knew there would be no food or drink at the track. I had loaded up on an Icelandic breakfast fit for a king. What could I do to help a fellow trackchaser in need? I turned to the only food I had in any of my bags….almonds. Carol sends me off on each trip with a couple hundred almonds. You don’t know how often, late at night, in a faraway budget motel, those almonds have come in handy. Now they would help out Will. I offered him my entire remaining stash of nuts. Will commented that what he really needed was something to drink. He had gone all day, it was now mid-afternoon, without anything to drink at all. Of course, his six-mile walk created even more thirst. However, the track had nothing to drink and neither did I. Will would likely have to walk another six miles back to town before his thirst could be satisfied. I hope this proves to all the “non-believers” that trackchasing truly is NOT a “dog eat dog” hobby. It is not a “cut-throat” hobby. It is simply a hobby where people go to racetracks to enjoy themselves. This does not mean people have to hang out with each other when they’re at the track. That should be each person’s prerogative. Now that Will had been sheltered from the cold, now that Will had been fed to the best of my limited ability and now that I had offered Will a sponsorship idea that could feed and house him for the rest of his life at a level higher than he might ever have had a right to expect, we could spend the day talking travel and trackchasing. That is exactly what we did. I respect Will White. I have always had a lot of respect for Will White. I feel he has always gone out of his way to do the right thing and make the right call. He can’t help it that he has questionable friends, right? I will tell you this. I have not always agreed with Will’s calls, but have never questioned the integrity he takes to make them. We definitely look at the world differently. There’s nothing wrong with that. Carol sometimes wishes that I were stranded on an island with a population of “Randys”. When she says that I don’t think she’s complimenting me, but just to irritate her I pretend she IS complimenting me. This “give and take” has resulted in 31 years of being happily married and that’s not bad out of thirty-seven! I was pleased to hear that if Will had it to do all over again, he might not be willing to admit people to the trackchasing group who have seen less than 200 tracks. I don’t really mind that some people have been allowed in with a smaller number. However, I would like to see EVERYONE have a common admittance requirement to prevent the inevitable lawsuits that might come Will’s way. Nevertheless, it is Will’s site and it is the “unofficial” sight of trackchasing. I guess we have no “official” sight. Therefore, Will can organize and report the results in any format he chooses. I had a flight to catch. After three rounds of racing for three different classes, I headed to the airport for a 5 p.m. flight. There wasn’t much racing left. I offered to give Will a ride back to town (I’m just too nice) saving him six miles of walking. He declined my offer. He likes to do things on his own. I do too but not when it makes my feet hurt. Anyway, I hope Will had a good time trackchasing in Iceland. I think we are both glad we ran into each other at the track. At the same time, I believe we both liked having it happen the way it did, without a formal plan being in place to make it happen. Good travels, Will! Oh no! Not another challenge! EDITOR’S NOTE Everyone who reads the RANLAY Racing Trackchaser Report is aware of the recently concluded “Race to 30 International Challenge”. This is when trackchasing’s unofficial trackchasing commissioner challenged me to race him to 30 trackchasing countries. Some of the Dreaded East Coast Trackchasers (DECTs) even had the gall to intimate that Will never made the challenge in the first place. Still, others felt I was taking advantage based upon the financial comparisons noted above. You know….you just can’t please all the folks all the time….especially when they don’t want to be pleased! Mr. White has issued another challenge to the Lewis clan. THIS time he wants to challenge “Trackchasing’s First Mother” to a “Race to 30”. If you don’t believe he really made this challenge I suggest you contact Will. At this point, Will has 23 trackchasing countries to his credit. How many does poor Carol have? Just 14. This should give Will White a good enough head start, but there’s a lot of walking to be done before either of these noted trackchasers sees racing in 30 countries. I discussed the idea with “Trackchasing’s First Mother”. Carol accepts the challenge. She has a valid passport and is ready to hit the road. You just might be very surprised at how quickly she will eat into the commissioner’s lead. Nevertheless, I predict it will be quite sometime before either one of these folks meets this goal. RACE REVIEW KAPELLUHRAUM, HAFNAFJOROUR, ICELAND The racing was fun to watch today. They had a little bit of everything on the track, a mixed surface road course. I am going to purposely limit the photos of the racing in this Trackchaser Report. I hope that encourages you to check out the photo album, which is just a drop-down menu away. I had a full day at the racetrack, but I did have my eye on an even greater prize. Had anyone in trackchasing ever done an “inter-continent” trackchasing double? Let me help you here. No, no one had ever done that. I was going to attempt it. I would see the racing in Iceland this afternoon. Then despite being five flying hours from the east coast of the United States, I would try to see a race in New Hampshire. I know. Crazy! MONADNOCK SPEEDWAY, WINCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE Yes, this is the little track that became famous in trackchasing circles. For the first time ever an inter-continent (Europe, then North America) trackchasing double was achieved. The tight quarter-mile asphalt oval, known as the Monadnock Speedway, became part of trackchasing history as the back half of today’s inter-continent double. I knew it would be difficult getting to Winchester, New Hampshire from Reykjavik, Iceland. There are no direct flights! My flight from Iceland left at 5 p.m. local time. I was flying standby. If I didn’t make that flight I would not be leaving for another 24 hours. My flight was scheduled to land in Boston at 6:35 p.m. Boston is five hours behind Reykjavik. That meant I would be landing at 10:35 p.m. Iceland time. The racing program at the Monadnock Speedway was scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Eastern time. The speedway was located some 101 miles to the north of Boston’s Logan International Airport. We landed on time, but from that point I would be busy. First, I had to clear customs and then retrieve my checked bag. Next, I would have to get a rental car. There would be no time to stop to eat. Icelandair had provided no complimentary food of any kind on the five-hour flight. I rank Boston as the worst city for urban traffic (supplanting Chicago) of any place I visit. However, on Saturday evening the traffic wasn’t bad. I had hoped to arrive at Monadnock by 9 p.m. I was fairly certain they would still be racing at that time. However, “Tonto”, my faithful GPS servant told me to expect a 9:25 p.m. arrival. With a scheduled 6 p.m. start time, this was starting to push the envelope. I am not a big fan of the East Coast road system, especially the two-lane roads. We lived in Connecticut back in the day, so I has some experience to back up my concerns. Without Tonto, I never would have achieved tonight’s inter-continent double. The last 30-40 miles covered some of the most rural and winding roads you can imagine. There were no guard rails for safety, only large oak trees defined out of bounds. The speed limits on these roads were an excruciatingly slow 30-40 M.P.H. I wanted to go faster, but a speeding ticket would be a very serious impediment to the overall trackchasing objective. Tonto didn’t let me down. The Monadnock Speedway was exactly where it was supposed to be. I had used the longitude/latitude info found at www.autoracingrecords.com. This is one of the most valuable services offered by any racing themed website. I quickly grabbed a spot from one of the “impatient” fans who had left before I arrived. Tonight’s admission fee was a somewhat high $25. Fortunately, they had stopped charging by the time I got there. For a trackchaser that chases on a controlled budget, this was a plus. The main event of the night was a 100-lap modified feature. As I entered the track, I could see they were on lap 90 of this race. They were also under caution for a major wreck. I had no idea if there were any races following this one or not. From a trackchasing perspective, it really didn’t matter. If a trackchaser sees any “competitive” racing, then the track not only CAN be counted it MUST be counted. Those are the rules, baby. I abide by the rules. I asked a track official if there were any races following the 100-lapper that was almost completed. Yep! I was in luck. There were still two 50-lap enduro races coming up. This gave me the green light to visit the concession stand. There a hot dog and Diet Coke cost me $4.30. That seemed like an odd number. The cashier struggled to give me my change in coins. Maybe they came up with that number simply to slow down the food line during busier times. The Monadnock Speedway is a quality racing complex. I wouldn’t mind coming back here someday, although I might not. The large grandstands were packed. At $25 per, the track made out tonight. The weather had set records for heat earlier in the day, but it had cooled off to the mid-60s by the time I got there. I was happy to have my sweatshirt with me. Rural Eastern race fans are a boisterous lot. Eastern race fans appear to be an older group, but with a good deal of families sprinkled in as well. No one would confuse the demographics of a west coast stadium off-road crowd with these people. They are very willing to share their opinions with both the people in their group but also with those within earshot (25 yards!). These fans up in New England are big NASCAR fans as well. Everyone around me had their favorites, more so than just about anywhere I travel. A good deal of fans would have a difficult time passing the President’s Council on Physical Fitness mid-term exam, but then that is true in most locations of the United States. Overall, a nice group of people who aren’t afraid to express their opinions in a slightly louder than conversational voice. The enduro racing I saw was very good. The first race was a 13-car event for V-8 powered stock cars. The second 50-lap enduro featured 31 four-cylinder stocks cars. They raced each other like there were driving 50 M.P.H. in a 20 M.P.H. school zone. They commonly raced 3-4 wide and darted in and out of traffic as if they had no brakes. There were lots of pluses to my visit to the Monadnock Speedway. First, it gave me an inter-continent trackchasing double. It was also nice not having to pay $25 to see this show. The enduro racing was some of the best racing I have seen this year. Recall, I am in a stage of my trackchasing career where there is very little really “good” racing. The entire program was very professional. I would consider the Monadnock Speedway a “top 40” track within the U.S. Following the races, Tonto found me a hotel down in Massachusetts. I was now past midnight locally. That meant it was past 4 a.m. in Reykjavik, Iceland where I woke up this morning. I just hoped that Will White had made the successful six-mile walk back to his hotel and was sleeping like a baby when the checkered flag was thrown on the first-ever inter-continent double in the history of trackchasing. COUNTRY/STATE COMPARISONS New Hampshire This evening I saw my 12th-lifetime track in the state that calls “granite” its state rock. This moves me into a tie with Brian Hickey and Pappy Hough for 14th place. I need four more tracks to crack the top 10 and just 15 more to tie Guy Smith and Paul Weidman who lead in the state with 27 tracks. RENTAL CAR UPDATE Reykjavik, Iceland – Friday/Saturday I would be driving the Thrifty Rental Car Racing Ford Ka. It might be better described that I would be WEARING the Ford Ka. The car is a three-door hatchback and is marketed in Europe as a “city car”. This had to be the smallest car I have ever rented. It wasn’t much bigger than one of those SMART cars. It had a 5-speed manual transmission and all of the power that I needed. It was a real struggle putting my carryon bag and computer bag in the trunk at the same time! I think I reserved this car at www.carrentals.com. I chose the car that was the least expensive since rental cars were very expensive, to begin with. I was quoted a rate of $193, including taxes, for the two-day rental. Folks, that’s expensive. When I went to get my car, I knew that renting a GPS unit would be a good idea. There were several times when the GPS saved my butt. Of course, it accurately calculated how far Will White walked from his hotel to the track (about 6.2 miles) had he walked along the highway rather than skipping through people’s backyards (if he did). I was very surprised to learn that my rental would be just $157 U.S. including two day’s worth of GPS rental. I have no idea why the price turned out to be lower. I had the $193 quote all printed out in my briefcase just on the chance they might try to charge me more at the rental counter. When I rented the GPS it was quoted at about 10 Euros per day or about $27 for the entire rental. I drove the car about 265 miles. I paid an average price of $4.47 per gallon. The car gave me 31.4 miles per gallon fuel mileage at a cost of 14.2 cents per mile. The car cost 59.1 cents per mile to rent, all taxes and GPS charges included. I’m slightly unclear about exactly how many miles I drove since I was not given a receipt upon check-in, although I’m close. Boston, Massachusetts – Saturday/Sunday As you might imagine, it would be difficult to get an inter-continent trackchasing double without renting two cars. For the second time in just a couple of weeks, I rented a Kia Amanti automobile. Coming soon! How do fellow P&G retirees really think? In my very next Trackchaser Report I have some really big news. Despite frequent questions, I can’t tell you what this is about until the appointed date. I will say I am receiving some most unusual questions and comments on this topic. Why I fear Ed Esser (coming very soon). Thanks for reading about my trackchasing, Randy Lewis Alberta’s #1 Trackchaser Too much is never enough. TRAVEL DETAILS AIRPLANE Orange County, CA – Atlanta, GA – 1,919 miles Atlanta, GA – Mobile, AL – 302 miles RENTAL CAR Mobile International Airport – trip begins Flomaton, Alabama – 77 miles Atlanta International Airport – 340 miles – trip ends AIRPLANE Atlanta, GA – Boston, MA – 944 miles Boston, MA – Reykjavik, ICELAND – 2,411 miles RENTAL CAR Reykjavik International Airport – trip begins Hafnafjorour, Iceland – 245 miles Reykjavik International Airport – 265 miles – trip ends AIRPLANE Reykjavik, Iceland – Boston, MA – 2,411 miles RENTAL CAR Logan (Boston) International Airport – trip begins Winchester, NH – 101 miles TRACK ADMISSION PRICES: Flomaton Speedway – $15 Kapelluhraum – No charge Monadnock Speedway – No charge COMPARISONS LIFETIME TRACKCHASER COMPARISONS UPDATE: There are no trackchasers currently within 200 tracks of my lifetime total. Other notables These worldwide trackchasers are within 10 tracks (plus or minus or more) of Carol’s current trackchaser total. 2009 TRACKCHASER STANDINGS Lifetime track totals in ( ). Tracks have been reported by 28 different worldwide trackchasers this season. LIFETIME NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY STANDINGS Final 2008 National Geographic Diversity results have been posted. Since I’m out on the east coast, I might as well work on some National Geographic Diversity opportunities. 1,401. Death Valley Raceway (oval), Armargosa Valley, Nevada – January 3 1,402. Lake Weyauwega Ice Track (oval), Weyauwega, Wisconsin – January 11 1,403. Marion Pond Ice Track (oval), Marion, Wisconsin – January 11 1,404. Grandvalira Circuit (road course), Port d’Envalira, Andorra – January 17 1,405. Kuna International Raceway (oval), Kuna, Idaho – January 25 1,406. Circuito Efren Chemolli (oval), Buenos Aires, Argentina – January 31 Ozark Empire Fairgrounds (oval), Springfield, Missouri – February 6 (new track for Carol only) Lake Speed Ice Track (oval), Tilleda, Wisconsin – February 7 (new track for Carol only) 1,407. DeltaPlex (oval), Grand Rapids, Michigan – February 8 1,408. Losail International Circuit (road course), Doha, Qatar – February 13 1,409. Lake Washington Ice Track (road course), Mankato, Minnesota – February 15 1,410. Bahrain International Circuit (road course), Sakhir, Bahrain – February 27 1,411. Dubai Autodrome (road course), Dubai, United Arab Emirates – February 28 1,412. Dunkin Donuts Center (oval), Providence, Rhode Island – March 6 1,413. Fur Rondy Grand Prix (road course), Anchorage, Alaska – March 8 1,414. Perris Auto Speedway (road course), Perris, California – March 14 1,415. Autodromo de Tocancipa (road course), Tocancipa, Colombia – March 22 1,416. Motorland Aragon (road course), Alcaniz, Spain – March 28 1,417. Circuto de Murca (road course), Murca, Portugal – March 29 1,418. High Plains Speedway (oval), Clovis, New Mexico – April 19 1,419. Flomaton Speedway (oval), Flomaton, Alabama – April 22 1,420. Kapelluhraum (road course), Hafnafjorour, Iceland – April 25, 2009 Good day from Iceland and other points involved in the trip. Click on the link below to view photos from my trip to Iceland. You’ll find most of the photos come with a caption. A fun short trip to Iceland is better than no trip to Iceland 
UPCOMING TRACKCHASING PLANS
RACETRACKS VISITED IN 2009
